20.) Exposure.

~~~Lilith

August 1st, 1950 I sat in my room thinking about my kingdom. I had ruled for almost a thousand years, and every two hundred years we would modernize for times. I had been working on a new infrastructure for the 2000s. The way humans are progressing especially with the power displayed in Japan it was alarming, to say the least. There was also tension rising between U.S.S.R and the Americans, this all started because of one defector in America or maybe the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand could be seen as a catalyst. It didn't matter how I look at it, an all-out war, especially with nuclear weapons, could be a nightmare. Humans are simultaneously predictable yet dangerous. I was getting ready to leave to go back home.

I sat in my room gazing upon the view in Baltimore Maryland one more time. It was a beautiful city, I had decided to buy an apartment building near the Chesapeake Bay area so I could look at the city. The top floor had been modified to make one living space with 5 bedrooms. Before it was modified there were three bedrooms, but thanks to this we had ample space now and plenty of windows. we had three bathrooms and one had two sinks and a lions foot tub. All of the rooms were large and the smallest one there was the one slept in. I had hardwood floors throughout the entire top floor. Since everything was on one floor it looked more like an enormous condo. We had a large living room and even got a television. The living room had a carpet that was a nice horizontal striped brown and white color. The TV stood on legs and was a hardwood frame it was light brown and it was still new only a few weeks old. We had couches in front of it and we enjoyed watching it. The couches were two loveseats and had been designed with nice dark leather and the cushions were soft how I liked them.

My room had a queen-sized bed smaller than what I was used to but I enjoyed sleeping there nonetheless. It had a simple wooden frame that looked almost like the one I had slept on when I was with Michael. I had a dresser and a walk-in closet though the dress wasn't large it still had a mirror I enjoyed it had been painted black and was hand-built from the carpenter on a floor beneath us. The walk-in closet had plenty of clothes from winter clothes to summer clothes. I had been wearing

The baron had been made aware of my presence but had also been told not to share it with anyone else and resume his personal duties. We also had a human living with us, he was just a butler. I then began to think of them the thought crashed through me like a train, thinking of their faces seeing them both and it had only been two months since I saw Adrian but I knew he would at least go a few more centimeters. His big brown eyes his beautiful smile he had such a sweet spirit like his mother. The fact that I would be a grandmother made me happy since I had never been a grandmother, but it also made me sad because I would never be able to hold that baby. Nor would I ever be able to grow old, what could I be other than an immortal monster while I watch my grandsons and my son grow old.

I understand it though, why I abandoned my child and husband why I walked away. It was because without me the empire that I worked hundreds of years to build would have surely failed. I wanted them to have autonomy thinking they would use their years as a human to understand how to run my empire, but most of those vampires only wanted was power. Power was nice to have, but it was also a waste because all it did was corrupt those who were weak-willed. The more I think about it, the more I realize my children are the only ones suitable for running my kingdom. This was probably one of the main reasons why I was willing to walk away from it all the 10 years I spent with that man were the briefest but some of the most beautiful, important, and most peaceful years of my life.

Love is something that I have experienced only a few times in my years, and each time I knew they were more than worthy of being immortal of being a vampire to be the king of my empire. To live along with me in this immortality. Sadly each time they would turn me down and they would except deaths embrace, A feeling of familiarity with each one I wondered why these men would turn down immortality. Many men would strive to have this...to be immortal but that was probably the reason I fell in love with those men. They were kind compassionate, but they also recognized that time is meant to be temporary. I could only hope that I could spend my last days with even one of them. Just to have Michael resting his head on my lap while we talked about his day at work. I could remember them all, and each turn I would remember how I stay with them until the end. All of them except for Michael.

~~~Fù-guān

'What is mother doing in there?' Lucian was curious but so was I.

'Fù what do you think?'

I had no clue what was on her mind she always closed her mind off when thinking. We all could only guess. She's calculating and perceptive we had to give her credit for that. We were finally getting ready to go. This was no thanks to me I slowed them down drastically. We were only going to be visiting for a few months. I have a sinking feeling that there was something more to Gabriel and she knows something about it but what?

"I don't know Lu," I said we had nicknames for each other and he was the one that called me Fù in the beginning.

We were both at a loss. I sat there in the living room drinking blood from a cup the butler gave me. His name was Augustus and he had been our supplier of blood while we were here. He had been young and healthy and was a slim dark-skinned young man. I didn't know how beautiful people could be until I saw him. He had known that we were vampires but still decided to stay with us. He had been with us for almost 3 months he had such sweet-tasting blood almost like tea. Lu went to his room to get his bag he had been trying to think of ways to get the mother out of that damn room.

'Why is she like this?' Lucian said his voice sounding annoyed and stressed. I shifted in my seat, then I decided to respond. "She has fallen in love with a human, and she wants to save her son." No matter how old that story was it was true. Lucian's eyes narrowed he then said ' Gabriel is special I won't deny that, but unless he turns into a vampire he would never see any of those gifts manifest.' He then stood up and fixed his tie; in all honesty, I think he knows how much of an asset Gabriel could be if he was ever able to mature.

Lucian then began to speak again. 'He experienced World War II and survived...war now is not what war was back then, you could die in an instant because a bullet from anywhere could decide to find its way into your skull.' I almost saw him shudder at that thought. 'You could be ripped apart by machine-gun fire.' He fixed his long golden hair while continuing. 'Gabriel is a true veteran at war and his latent potential could be useful if he was a vampire but it would be nothing but a waste if he decides to join her as a human we all have seen how that panned out.' He was thinking about the time Gabriel was almost drained dry, it's still pissed me off and baffled how he was able to get into the house without alerting us.

Lucian sat back in his chair we were waiting for our plane that leaves at 5:30 pm and we were supposed to have left an hour ago, it was already 3:30. I had been wearing a yellow summer dress and some flat white shoes. Lucian always wore some kind of suit, this time he put on a white one with a black dress shirt he never found himself a fan of bowties but did love regular ties. His shoes are black and his cufflinks and his tie are black. It was quite baffling that he looks like such a pretty boy, but beneath that exterior was a warrior he had fought in more wars then I could count. He had decided to take a break for the last few decades, the last war he ever decided to participate in was World War I. The door finally opened to her room as she walked out she wasn't even dressed. It wasn't a problem clearly but the lack of effort she put into getting dressed showed signs that she wasn't even prepared to leave here yet.

"Mother, you're not even ready yet?" I was becoming frustrated with her, how could she not be dressed? "Lucia was already at the airport." I continued, I forgot she left first she was just waiting for us.

She looked unbothered and on top of that her hair was a mess as if she had just woken up, it was impossible because she was up before us. Had she spent that long in her room doing nothing?

'I'll be ready soon.' She was telling the truth as we could travel there via our speed but we needed to pretend we were human. Did she throw that sound fact aside?

Minutes later she was dressed and ready to go she wore a black pencil skirt and a red drip-dry blouse. She had ironed it to perfections so that she could be comfortable. The buttons went all the way up to the top and she wore a bracelet. Her earrings were small but black pearls. She then turned to Augustus and said: 'your services are no longer needed.' His demeanor was quite calm and he was quiet after hearing her say it. She then pulled out three thousand dollars and in hundred dollar bills and spoke again. 'This should keep you afloat till you find another job.'

Augustus is a kind man but also has self-respect. You could even say he is one that was almost like Michael. She talked about him a bit which is rare. The way he thought and how he looked at everything you would think he didn't have a problem in the world. Though that was the opposite, the complete opposite which is quite alarming. When we found him he had been homeless, and believe it or not he tried to rob us. We weren't even afraid, nor were we bothered. It wasn't until I gave him money but I didn't give it to him because he was robbing us. I could feel that he needed it more than me. It took him days to work up the courage to try to rob us, and here we were making sure that he would try to live a good life outside of being exposed to vampires. I have more money than I ever desired or needed. Money wasn't important to me, we lived in luxury simply because mother pave the way for us. We had our own money too, we worked our way up earning money. All of us have grand fortunes at our disposal we just use our mothers.

He has narrow eyes, but they were warm with kindness. He has a round face with a strong jaw, and he almost always supported a short haircut. It was close to where you could almost see his scalp. He had a warming smile and always greeted us with ma'am and sir. His teeth were perfect, despite the fact that he had eaten a number of things that would surely make any normal humans teeth fall out. He takes good care of himself and has been eating healthy meals. I found myself looking at his lips and his jaw again, he was so handsome. For the first time in a while, he realized there were people out there who are willing to help. We cleaned him up and he had stayed with us ever since. He's 19 Years old and was quiet a lot of the time.

Augustus had then said in a calm tone 'it was a pleasure serving you all.' His thoughts did betray him, he wanted to come with us, but knew he wouldn't fit in within our lives. Lucian remained silent though his thoughts did say a lot, he did fancy Augustus and all the times they played poker. Yes, he was a butler but he was also becoming more and more a friend the longer he stayed.

He had built a bond with us and I found myself liking this man even though I had the body of a 16-year-old I was nearly 600 years old. I had never loved a human man before, I didn't want him to leave. I didn't want him to go anywhere I wanted to be with him. I wanted him to be with me. Was this the love that mother felt from Michael?

"No," I whispered it and I surprised myself, but then she turned around. Her eyebrow raised, her face showed concern but not because I said no but because I showed interest in another person.

"Mother I would like him to stay with us."

I don't know what came over me, I don't know why I told her that. I said it so calmly but surely she would allow it? How many humans had she decided to be with? All I was asking was for me to experience a relationship with someone other than a vampire. I won't let what happened to Gabriel happen to Augustus. My thoughts were so clear and so present that I knew she could peer into my mind but I didn't care this was a man I had grown to appreciate and I wanted her to know.

'Do as you please but I hold you responsible.' She paused then continued. 'despite being physically 16 you have lived more than 10 of his lifetimes.' He was quiet but he was happy his thoughts blew up with nothing but joy. He could barely contain himself I could see the joy in him and it brought me joy.

I felt relieved that she would allow it, almost like a child. I want someone that I can love. Maybe it was time for me to break away, maybe it was time for me to do something more with my life. I want to be more than a princess, I have always had my own territories I want to do more with myself. I have grown complacent, something that I swore I would never do. I spent 50 years doing nothing but stagnating.

~~~Lilith

What was I thinking, I didn't want to leave? Now I was leaving with one more person. Fù-guān fancy's this man and I couldn't stop her, she could love him who was I to do to stand in her way? She would be a grown woman 10 times over if she wasn't a vampire. She deserves to feel the same thing I had felt be it love or not.

We are ready to go, Augustus packed what little he had and was ready to come with us. He didn't have much, that was because he was minimalist at heart. Hopefully, he could get used to our lifestyle, it's 4:30 and we would barely make it. If we hurried to the airport. It was great weather though I wonder would I stay home this time?

The drive to the airport went smoothly although we had spent almost 15 minutes in traffic, I found myself more annoyed at that wait then anything else. When we got to the airport, we loaded our bags onto the plane and said they're ready to take off after a three-hour delay. Lucia had the forethought to pull some strings for us. Money really does make the world go around nowadays.

It was time to say goodbye to my son and my grandchildren forever, it was time to let him live a human life as long as no one would attack him. I am the main target, he will live a safe and free life. Yes, he'll have to deal with racism but with time life will be better. With time Adrian would grow up only thinking of me as an imagination, with time those children will grow up being free. I think this would be the best gift I could give to my son Gabriel by not existing in his life, by allowing him to be free of this trauma. With time Adrian would grow up only thinking of me as an imaginary person, with time those children will grow up being free. I think this would be the best gift I could give to my son Gabriel by not existing in his life, by allowing him to be free of me.

We sat on the plane ready to leave, It was time for me to head back to Sweden where there would be a certain town and a large mansion on the outside of it. We head back to a place where I run everything from the shadows, and Gabriel is free of this nightmare. He has finally exited the nightmare and he will never know that there are eyes watching him. I will only watch him from afar, to make sure he's safe.

I will not Puppeteer over his life again, I want to just protect my son. I know he will never see me again, but I will always watch over him. I thought about Michael again. I beg Michael for his inputs. An input that I would never hear. What have I done to our son? I had exposed him to nightmares no human should see.

I'm quite sure his dreams are filled with nothing but, nightmares and silhouettes of things that happened in his life. Something he could never quite comprehend, it was like déjà vu only the difference was that it was like jamais vu. This situation had happened before but it did not feel familiar, almost like he was there but not there. The differences are that the situations have happened and he would have to live with that mental scarring. Human brains are so advanced, as a vampire, they only become more advanced.

As we begin to take off I looked into the night sky and decided I would read Gabriel's mind. I don't know whether it was out of boredom? Or maybe I wanted to see one last glimpse of him but I felt them. His thoughts bombarding me with rage, sadness, weakness, and hate. It was bullets tearing through my head, but then something worse happened I felt it, me, and his mind linked up. I could see what he was seeing it was a group of men inside of his home and one had him pinned to the floor. A knee is in his back and gun to his temple. The man had his face turned to Wendy, and oh god her face was battered and bloody they were ripping her clothes off they were about to make him watch...I wanted to scream stop not for them to stop but more of a war cry the connection suddenly stopped.

Time had paused all around me, I knew what this was. This had to be the interference of something much higher. It was only then that I saw her, her black skin so dark that it looked like outer space her eyes so beautiful but you could never make out the colors all you could think was that they were stars of the cosmos. Her lips so luscious and white almost as if she had white lipstick on, but they were so natural and beautiful. It was the same with her hair on her head and her eyebrows they were so white so pure. I knew who she was she was a friend sometimes but an enemy to others. She was one of the greatest huntsmen to ever live, or you could say she is the greatest huntsman to ever live. It was Zamiel God's huntsman Angels were universal in gender, they could be men or women. Their looks were also depending on who saw them. Right now she decided to Look like a woman, she was beautiful but she was naked she never did care about clothing when she chose to look like a woman, she had no problem with showing up whenever she chose to. This was important she stopped all of time to tell me something, that was on a scale that a being not of this world could do.

"What are you doing here ?" I said in an almost annoyed voice. I wanted to pretend that I wasn't surprised, but there was nothing I could do.

'how long has it been?' She stood in the middle of the plane, time stopped the stewardess was holding a tray of food. She was calm and almost always had a sarcastic attitude with her, but it wasn't with arrogance or cruelty it was just she knew how things will play out and decided to keep her mouth shut. Or she would give you hints as to how things will play out, she never did this with me she told me how it would play out and knew there was nothing I could do about it. This was one of the few entities that could make me feel powerless, I understood how she could make me feel powerless to this degree but I never tolerated it.

"It's been about 400 years, and yet here you are still meddling with me." I despised angels, I despised the fact that they could interfere with people's lives and have no repercussions. I could never get cozy with someone like Zamiel no matter how many times she came under the guise of friendship or as an enemy. She just wanted to ensure that the status quo remained the same. With a smile, she then said 'Gabriel is going to turn into the mad king.' Again with this madness, but I also knew something was wrong was he meant to kill me and take my throne? How could he even if he turned into a vampire it would take him at least 1000 years to even touch my power.

'Oh, I know you're wondering how could he?' Her arrogant tone showing. 'It's because he was made to do it.' She said that while sounding almost proud. My eyes widened but then my anger only began to overflow even more. "You stopped time. Violated the laws of the universe to tell me that piece of shit information?" I unfastened my seatbelt and began to make my way to her, The plane wasn't as large as the one I took to get here but it still had ample space because we didn't have many people on it. I used my speed because I wanted to ram my fist into her face but to no avail, I wound up with my face underneath her foot. Her weight subduing me and she put just enough on me to keep me down and then she began to speak. 'Listen here and listen well.' Her voice sounding callous and calculating. 'You have two options, you can rescue your son right now from that madness but you'll be too late. He will experience some of the worst trauma that no human mind can take but his psyche may just withstand it, and save him and risk him being the Mad King'

I was struggling trying to move this bitch's foot off my face, every time I would try to move I could just feel the weight of her foot crushing my face into the carpet of the plane's floor. She still wanted me to see her face, she wanted me to know that she was serious. 'Or Option two as she continued, you can go back to your mansion and Gabriel will commit suicide days later, putting a gun to his temple and his brains paint his bedroom.' My eyes widened could I have been this powerless? Her face showed clear signs of sympathy to a certain degree. She then began to speak again. 'You're not powerless you're outclassed.' She said that while she released her foot from my face, I stood up pissed and upset that I would have to settle for no matter what I did.

Some time passed as she said 'You get one make it count.' She then let her guard down, and I was just too much of a prideful person to let her get away with that. I smashed my face into her face with everything I had, it was so strong I could feel part of my skull regenerating from the multiple fractures across my head. A black liquid begins to come out of my head it was some of my blood, but it was also some of hers. Unflinching as her skull was cracked open and blood dripping past her eyes, she even smiled and said 'No matter how much you pretend to be a queen you are still a brute and a predator.'

I was silent, I couldn't stand the thought of this woman talking down to me. 'No smart-ass response?' I regained my composure and said: "Why was he designed to eliminate me?" She smiled and decided to indulge me It's because he has more than just a vampire inside of him. My eyes widened, it was impossible could they have been tinkering with humans again? Zamiel smiled and said. 'You have access to a lot more knowledge than humans given the experience you have. It would take humans another 10-30 years to realize what DNA is and genes are so I expect that you'll figure it out, but now I have much more important things to do I just wanted to give you a heads up. What you do with the information is up to you.'

"I will save my son even if it means I would have to die in the future." A smile crept across her face with satisfaction, I said exactly what she wanted me to do and with that, she vanished time resumed.

I'm coming to save you, Gabriel, please hold on a little longer I thought to myself. I was still standing and I looked outside we were hundreds of feet off the ground, we had already taken off. My kids all looked at me Lucia, Lucian, and Fù-guān all of them have the same question on their minds. What were you doing? "Gabriel," I said it out loud for them to hear the stewardess was about to tell me to take a seat. I couldn't it was time for me to go and help Gabriel he needed me even if it cost me everything I wanted to protect him. I couldn't share what had happened, they would do everything they could to stop me. They would try to prevent me from saving him because in their eyes it's either one human that I can make more of or a kingdom without the queen. I knew the comparison could never really compare, I had at least 80 million vampires to govern versus one human being. I could put an end to this and keep my throne secured just by watching him suffer, just by watching my son die. All I would have to do is stay on this plane...

"I refuse."

End of chapter: Exposure.